Racks, frames, cabinets and the like for supporting computer and other electronic equipment are very well known. Similarly, raceways for routing cables and wires to and from that equipment are likewise well known. In particular, a number of raceways have been proposed for routing cables, wires and the like (generally referred to hereinafter as “cables”) vertically through or adjacent to equipment racks, frames, cabinets and the like (generally referred to hereinafter as “racks”). Such raceways may be used to route cables vertically to equipment mounted or otherwise supported on a rack from other equipment on the rack, from overhead or underfloor raceway, or the like. These cables are generally routed in the vertical direction to a point adjacent to the desired equipment and then routed in the horizontal direction to the desired equipment.
An important characteristic of such raceways is the presence of a plurality of openings in the sides of the raceway through which cables may be routed, thereby facilitating more convenient access between the equipment and the interior of the raceway. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 2,921,607 to Caveney (“Caveney”) and U.S. Pat. No. 3,705,949 to Weiss (“Weiss”) each disclose a covered wiring duct or wireway which includes side walls having a series of finger-like projections separated by openings. The cables may be routed through the openings by bending them around the projections, thus allowing the cables to be routed with relative precision, and preventing cables from hanging loosely across the face of the rack itself. A gap at the distal ends of each pair of adjacent projections permits cables to be inserted into each respective opening. The gap is narrower than the opening, thus aiding in the retention of the cables within the opening. The distal ends of all the projections may then be covered by a cover, thus providing further retention capability.
Unfortunately, both the Caveney and the Weiss designs suffer from a number of drawbacks, including most particularly the relatively limited size of the openings. The openings between the Caveney projections are only approximately as large as the size of the projections themselves, and the openings between the Weiss projections, although of a somewhat unusual shape, are actually even smaller in area than the projections. Such small openings are frequently inadequate to handle the large number of cables that are frequently routed horizontally from a certain elevation on a vertical raceway to the equipment mounted thereon. Thus, vertical raceways having larger openings are required. Further, if a cover is to be installed on the Caveney or Weiss raceways, it must be carefully aligned with all of the distal ends of the projections and pressed into place, and no provision is made to allow the cover to be hinged open once installed.
More recently, a number of raceways have been developed having a small number of widely spaced fingers or other retention members projecting from a trough. Between each pair of adjacent projections is a wide opening which is many times larger than the width of the projections, such that a raceway for a full height rack might have only six or eight sets of projections. Unfortunately, because so few projections are available for the cables to be routed around, this type of raceway does not allow cables to be routed as precisely as with the Caveney and Weiss type of raceway, there is a much greater chance of cables dangling loosely, and/or cables of greater length must be used in order to reach a projection before being bent toward the desired equipment.
Still more recently, a new vertical raceway has been made available by Panduit Corp. The Panduit raceway utilizes a PVC trough attached to a steel base. The trough includes a base member and a plurality of narrow finger-like side members extending perpendicularly therefrom. A slit, narrower in width than the fingers, is formed between each pair of adjacent fingers for routing cables therethrough, similar to the Caveney design. Barbs at the distal ends of the fingers limit access to the slits to only a narrow gap, thereby preventing cables which have been installed in the slits from accidentally becoming dislodged. Advantageously, each finger is scored near the base member so that it may easily be broken off and removed, thereby creating a wider opening for receiving cables. A hingeable cover may be attached to the distal ends of the remaining fingers by clipping a plurality of hinges in between the tips of the fingers and attaching the cover thereto. The raceway may be attached to the side of a rack to route cables to electronic components mounted on or in the rack by guiding the cables vertically to a location adjacent to the selected component and then through one of the openings formed between the fingers.
Unfortunately, the Panduit raceway still suffers from a number of drawbacks. First, once fingers are broken off of the Panduit raceway to create larger openings, they cannot be replaced. Further, if one or more fingers is broken off to create a larger opening, the gap between the fingers which remain to define the opening is quite large, with very little material or structure remaining to retain the cables in the opening, other than the raceway cover. Also, the Panduit cover may be attached only using hinge members which are each mounted on the distal ends of a pair of adjacent fingers, rather than to the trough itself, thus increasing the risk of mechanical failure, particularly as the cover is opened and closed.
The Panduit, Caveney and Weiss raceways include other drawbacks as well. For example, the unibody construction of the side walls limits the construction and relative dimensions of the projections and the openings created thereby because the projections must be formed from the same material as the rest of the walls, and, in the case of Panduit and Caveney, from the same material as the base of the trough. In addition, the unibody construction limits the installation flexibility otherwise available if the projections could be selectively disposed at various locations along the raceway without affecting the body of the raceway itself.
Perhaps most significantly, none of the cable rings formed in the sides of known prior art raceways are arranged to align precisely with the equipment mounting locations on the racks to which the raceways are attached. It is well known that the vertical dimension of racks is frequently measured in standardized units. The most common unit of measurement is the “rack mounting unit” (“RMU”). An RMU is commonly defined as 1.75 inches in height. Electrical components as well as accessories, which include horizontal raceways, patch panels, and the like, are also commonly measured in RMU's. For example, a 2 RMU component is one which is 3.50 inches or less in height. Thus, a rack which has 45 RMU may accommodate components and accessories totaling 45 RMU. Further, to conserve space, components and accessories are frequently installed only at vertical locations corresponding to a whole number of RMU's in order to avoid interfering with adjacent components and accessories.
Unfortunately, none of the known prior art raceways take this arrangement into consideration. Thus, the cable rings or similar structures provided on prior art vertical raceways are not properly aligned with the equipment and accessories to which they must route the cables. As a result, the shortest path from the interior of the raceway to the equipment or accessory destination is frequently blocked by the body of one of the finger-like projections. Moreover, smaller components and accessories may not have any cable rings whatsoever disposed next to them. For high density wiring routes, cable rings may become unnecessarily overcrowded because they must be diverted through other cable rings. Thus, a need exists for a cable raceway having cable rings disposed at a standardized interval which corresponds to the mounting locations of the equipment and accessories stored in the rack.